China has ramped up financial support to real economy, as indicated by social financing and loan data in February, according to experts.
Data released on Friday by the People's Bank of China (PBOC) show that at the end of February, the total social financing in China reached 417.29 trillion yuan (about 57.65 trillion U.S. dollars), marking an 8.2-percent increase year on year.
Experts said that the accelerated issuance of government bonds is the main driving force behind the rapid growth of social financing.
"Local governments have been gathering pace in issuing bonds. Among them, bonds which were issued under the debt-for-bond swap program stood at nearly 800 billion yuan, more than one-third of the total for the whole of last year, and more than 600 billion yuan higher than the amount issued in January this year," said Wen Bin, chief economist of China Minsheng Bank.
The rapid growth of net corporate bond financing also provides certain support to the aggregate financing to the real economy, according to relevant experts.
"Since the second half of last year, bond market interest rates have remained generally low. Companies have seized the opportunity to increase bond financing, effectively reducing overall financing costs," said Dong Ximiao, chief researcher of Merchants Union Consumer Finance.
At the end of February, according to the central bank, outstanding yuan loans amounted to 261.78 trillion yuan, up 7.3 percent year on year.
Notably, by the end of February, inclusive loans for small- and micro- businesses went up 12.4 percent to 33.43 trillion yuan, and medium-to-long-term loans for the manufacturing sector grew 10.3 percent to 14.48 trillion yuan, with both figures outpacing overall loan growth.
"Loan data in February show that loans remained at a historically high level, maintaining strong support for the real economy," said Dong.
China beefs up financial support to real economy: experts
A Chinese envoy to the United Nations on Tuesday urged Israel to immediately cease all military operations in the Gaza Strip, after Israel resumed large-scale attacks in the war-torn region.
Israel carried out deadly bombardments across the Gaza Strip early Tuesday, killing more than 400 people, as it vowed to intensify attacks if Hamas did not release the hostages still held in the enclave. The surprise airstrikes began overnight amid indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas regarding the next steps of a truce, which could include ending the war and releasing the remaining Israeli hostages. The strikes broke nearly two months of ceasefire and raised fears of fully reigniting the 17-month war.
Speaking at the United Nations (UN) Security Council's open briefing on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question, Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations (U.N.), condemned Israel's resumption of attacks on the Gaza Strip.
"China finds it regrettable that the hard-earned ceasefire was shattered. China is gravely concerned over and strongly condemns Israel's resumption of attacks on Gaza. We strongly urge Israel to abandon the logic of supremacy of force. Military means are not the way to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli issue. The sharp contrast between the 15-month bloody conflict and the 42-day ceasefire has clearly shown that the abuse of force is not the right way to resolve the hostage issue. Instead, it may bring them more danger. China urges Israel to abandon its obsession with the use of force, immediately stop its military operations in Gaza, and stop collective punishment of Gaza civilians. We strongly demand a lasting ceasefire in Gaza," he said.
Fu pointed out that since a ceasefire agreement has been reached, it should be fully implemented with goodwill and seriousness, and the parties concerned should not seek to change or undermine the agreement midway.
China calls on the parties concerned to fully and continuously implement the ceasefire agreement, and expects the guarantors of the ceasefire agreement to uphold a fair and responsible attitude, promote consistent implementation of the three-phase agreement, and ensure a lasting ceasefire in Gaza, he said.
"We strongly oppose any weaponization and politicization of humanitarian aid. As of today, no humanitarian aid has entered Gaza for 17 consecutive days. Desalination plants are also unable to operate due to the loss of power supply, exacerbating the water shortage crisis. Using humanitarian aid as a bargaining chip violates international law, especially international humanitarian law. China condemns the move and urges Israel to fulfill its obligations as an occupying power under international humanitarian law and immediately restore full access to humanitarian aid in Gaza," said the envoy.
Fu stressed that implementation of the two-state solution is the only viable way to resolve the Palestinian issue.
Noting that China also supports the Gaza reconstruction plan initiated by Egypt and other Arab countries, he called on the international community to increase efforts to advance the political process of the two-state solution and provide necessary guarantees for it.
Fu also said that over the past period of time, people have witnessed a dangerous sign in the Middle East -- the international rule of law and international order are violated and undermined, the law of the jungle seems to reign, which is worrying and concerning.
He said that the Security Council should put a prompt end to such chaos, and China supports further actions by the Security Council to bring about a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, restore peace in the Middle East, and achieve a comprehensive, just, and lasting solution to the Palestinian question.
Chinese envoy urges Israel to immediately cease military operations in Gaza
